This virtual Fall Out Boy gig is helping restaurant workers—here's how

Fall Out Boy are celebrating St. Patrick’s Day in a big way this year. On March 17, the band are playing a virtual concert where they will be performing some of their biggest hits.

For the event, Fall Out Boy are teaming up with the Illinois Restaurant Association Educational Foundation. Together, they are raising funds for bar and restaurant employees in their home state who have been without work amid the COVID-19 crisis.

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In partnership with Miller Lite, Fall Out Boy are taking the stage on St. Patrick’s Day for one of the first times this year. Their virtual concert kicks off on Wednesday, March 17 at 5 p.m. PT/8 p.m. ET on Chicago radio station 103.5 KISS FM’s YouTube channel. To donate, all viewers have to do is text RELIEF to 773-985-2703.

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Along with their big St. Patrick’s Day event, Fall Out Boy are also celebrating the 25th anniversary of Fueled By Ramen. This week, limited edition merch inspired by the Take This To Your Grave era has been released. As well, fans can pick up an exclusive silver vinyl ($20) of the 2003 album. Pre-orders have already begun and items are expected to ship on the week of April 30 when the collection officially launches.

The new Take This To Your Grave merch collection includes a black-and-white shirt ($30) with the iconic album cover shot by Ryan Bakerink on the front. As well, a black and blue crewneck sweatshirt with lyrics from “Saturday” ($45) has launched alongside a grey pullover hoodie ($50) with the LP’s artwork printed on the back.

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Of course, Fall Out Boy’s St. Patrick’s Day event isn’t the first time they’ve given back to the community this past year. Back in September, they went head to head with their Hella Mega Tour tourmates Weezer on Family Feud. The band played for the FOB Fund, an organization that raises money for gardening and food education among other resources in Chicago.

As well, in October, they launched their specialSugar, We’re Goin’ To Get Tacos,” a clear reference to 2005’s “Sugar, We’re Goin’ Down.” The tacos were sold at Casa Vega in Los Angeles and part of the proceeds from sales was donated to No Us Without You. The non-profit charity provides “food security to the most disenfranchised hospitality workers affected by the pandemic.”

Now, Fall Out Boy are gearing up to reunite with Weezer this summer for the Hella Mega Tour with Green Day. Last year, the tour was postponed in Asia, Europe and the U.K., North America and, eventually, New Zealand and Australia amid the COVID-19 crisis. Following the first postponements, Pete Wentz assured fans they would see the tour one way or another.

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“I would say that this tour may not happen exactly at the time or when it was supposed to happen or how it was supposed to happen but the tour will happen,” he told NME in April.

Finally, last summer, the rescheduled dates for the Hella Mega Tour legs in Europe and the U.K. and North America were announced. As it stands, the tour is set to kick off on June 9 in Vienna, Austria. Despite the uncertainty in the live music industry, Weezer frontman Rivers Cuomo says the band are still preparing for the tour this summer.

“My manager just told me yesterday that the U.S. promoter is still saying it’s gonna happen,” he told NME in January. “That could change, but I’m not making any other plans for the summer.”

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While fans count down the days until the Hella Mega Tour starts, Fall Out Boy are staying busy in other ways. Back in January, Fall Out Boy helped celebrate the inauguration of President Joe Biden and Vice President Kamala Harris.

Alongside will.i.am, James Taylor and Carole King, Fall Out Boy performed for the We The People pre-inauguration concert. For the special appearance, they played their 2015 hitCenturies,” off of American Beauty/American Psycho.

Watch Fall Out Boy’s We The People performance below.

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As it turns out, Fall Out Boy’s performance was kind of a full-circle moment. Why? Well, Fall Out Boy and Biden have quite a history not many know about. Back in 2008, when Barack Obama was running for president with his future VP Biden, Wentz revealed that his parents met while campaigning for Biden.

“I would not be standing here actually in reality at all because my parents met working for Biden,” Wentz told the Associated Press. “They met on the campaign, so they have this particular affection for Joe. He came to their wedding. If it weren’t for Joe Biden, I would not exist as a human being.”

Shortly after Biden won the presidential election in November, Wentz shared a throwback photo of them together.

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“My parents met working for Joe Biden in the Senate in the ’70s. To me, he is a beacon of empathy, compassion and kindness. The times we live in call for a leader with these specific traits. Proud to call Joe Biden my president.”

 

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A post shared by Pete Wentz (@petewentz)

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More recently, Patrick Stump appeared in a pretty unexpected place. Earlier this month, fans noticed a particular character in a new Family Guy episode sounded a lot like the Fall Out Boy frontman.

Although the Family Guy character doesn’t resemble Stump in the slightest, his voice is very hard to miss. Stump’s voice appears in a brief scene where Peter Griffin is checking out at a convenience store.

As it turns out, Stump is seemingly a fan of Family Guy. Over the years, the vocalist has done a few impressions of the animated show’s characters during Fall Out Boy concerts.

The full list of the Hella Mega Tour dates is below and more information on the tour can be found here.

Hella Mega Tour dates:

06/09/21 – Vienna, AT @ Ernst Happel Stadium
06/20/21 – Paris, FR @ La Defense Arena
06/21/21 – Antwerp, BE @ Sportpaleis
06/23/21 – Groningen, NL @ Stadspark
06/25/21 – London, UK @ London Stadium
06/26/21 – Huddersfield, UK @ The John Smith’s Stadium
06/28/21 – Glasgow, UK @ Bellahouston Park
06/30/21 – Dublin, IE @ RDS Arena

07/14/21 – Seattle, WA @ T-Mobile Park
07/17/21 – Los Angeles, CA @ Dodger Stadium
07/18/21 – San Diego, CA @ Petco Park
07/20/21 – San Francisco, CA @ Oracle Park
07/24/21 – Dallas, TX @ Globe Life Field
07/27/21 – Atlanta, GA @ Truist Park
07/29/21 – Houston, TX @ Minute Maid Park
07/31/21 – Jacksonville, FL @ TIAA Bank Field

08/01/21 – Miami, FL @ Hard Rock Stadium
08/04/21 – New York, NY @ Citi Field
08/05/21 – Boston, MA @ Fenway Park
08/08/21 – Washington, DC @ Nationals Park
08/10/21 – Detroit, MI @ Comerica Park
08/13/21 – Hershey, PA @ Hersheypark Stadium
08/15/21 – Chicago, IL @ Wrigley Field
08/17/21 – Toronto, ON @ Rogers Centre
08/19/21 – Pittsburgh, PA @ PNC Park
08/20/21 – Philadelphia, PA @ Citizens Bank Park
08/23/21 – Minneapolis, MN @ Target Field
08/25/21 – Commerce City, CO @ DICK’s Sporting Goods Park

Are you going to tune in for Fall Out Boy’s St. Patrick’s Day event? Which item from the Take This To Your Grave merch collection do you want most? Let us know in the comments below.